Cinderella Substitute (10 page)

By the time Nate rang her doorbell at precisely eight o'clock, the butterflies in her stomach had been replaced by elephants with wings. It would be difficult to eat a three-course dinner when she felt as sick as a dog. Her confidence had grown since she had started to work for Nate. However, the importance he'd attached to this occasion had sent her right back to square one. She hated to feel uncertain, so paused for a moment to collect her thoughts before she hurried down the stairs to let Nate in.

Jenni's mouth gaped open when she opened the door. He wore a tailored black suit she hadn't seen before. As he stood on her doorstep, he looked larger, darker, and more handsome than ever. His eyes widened as he took in her appearance. A low whistle left his lips.

"Wow Jenni! You look fantastic."

This time there could be no doubt about his opinion of her image. He studied her with open admiration. "You'll knock them dead."

Her pulse still beat wildly as she checked in her coat at the hotel cloakroom. She took her place next to Nate in the lobby and looked around for their hosts.

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The elevator doors opened. The Americans appeared. Jo Marchant looked resplendent in an oriental jade silk two-piece suit. Nate gave Jenni's hand a quick comforting squeeze. She savored the brief touch and drew strength from the fleeting contact.

To her relief, the meal went well. Mr. Woods, or Sam as he rapidly became, was a genial and entertaining host. Jo Marchant proved to be an educated, interesting hostess. The part Jenni had been dreading, making casual conversation, had been fun after all.

After coffee, Sam suggested they adjourn to the residents'

lounge for a post-dinner liqueur. Jenni excused herself to go to the powder room. Jo accompanied her. They walked across the marble tiled floor of the lobby together.

Jenni stood in front of the marble-topped basins and ran cool water over her hot wrists. She stole a quick glance at Jo as she touched up her lipstick. The American girl appeared well groomed, sophisticated, with not a hair out of place.

"I hope you don't mind my asking a personal question," Jo said, "but you and Nate? Are you an item?" She looked at Jenni.

Jenni paused. A great spear of jealousy pierced her heart.

She wished she could lie. "No, we're not. Nate's fiancé was killed in an accident two years ago. We're just friends and colleagues." She hoped she sounded calm and matter-of-fact.

"Mmm, I see. That must have been terrible for him."

"He doesn't like to talk about it." Jenni's dismay grew as she watched Jo. If anyone was elegant, intelligent and beautiful enough to replace Cerys in Nate's affections, then Jo 90

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stood a good chance. Jenni's green-eyed jealousy monster raged inside her. Each word Jo spoke was a fresh stab of anguish.

Jo smiled. "Two years is a long time alone for a guy as good looking as Nate. I can't believe he doesn't date."

"He loved Cerys very much." Jenni felt compelled to defend him.

"Maybe he needs to meet the right woman." Jo suggested.

She smoothed her already perfect hair. The iron bands around Jenni's heart tightened as she fiddled with her watch to hide her agitation. She hoped Jo hadn't noticed her hands tremble on the strap.

The rest of the night passed in pure agony for Jenni. Jo's technique was subtle. Jenni had to give her credit for that.

There was no out-and-out flirting, just solicitous attention to his every word. Pain twisted like a dagger in Jenni's heart every time Nate responded.

Jenni remained lost in her own thoughts and oblivious of her silence until Sam spoke. "Are you tired, Jenni? It's been a busy day."

"I am, actually. It's been a great evening and a real pleasure to get to know you both but I think I'd better call it a night." She picked up her bag and stood up. Nate leapt to his feet.

"I'll take a taxi home, Nate. I don't want to be the party pooper." She smiled apologetically at Sam and Jo.

"No, I'll take you home. It's late. This close to Christmas, it can be difficult to get a cab." Nate offered.

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A sneaky part of her was glad he didn't want to stay with Jo, but she couldn't help feeling concerned the Americans might be offended if they both disappeared.

"Actually, Jo and I are ready to call it a night, too. We've that trip to London tomorrow. It's been a busy day today. I think the old jet lag is creeping in," Sam shook hands with Nate and kissed Jenni on the cheek. "It's been a great night.

I'll be in touch soon. Good to get to know you both."

The roads gleamed white with frost when they left the hotel. Ice covered the Range Rover. Jenni huddled up in the front of the car while Nate ran the engine to defrost the windows.

"That went well, don't you think?" she asked as Nate cleared the windscreen.

"Not bad. You were great. Sam is a bit old-fashioned when it comes to business. He always prefers to deal with people he feels he knows and he claims that by meeting people in a less formal setting, he can soon tell which companies he would be happy to deal with."

"Is he right?" Jenni asked. "Has he ever had his fingers burned?"

Nate laughed. "No, Sam Woods is a shrewd judge of people. He always seems to do well with his developments.

Once Sam has your company on his team, he puts lots of contracts your way. That's why tonight was so important."

"I see." She longed to ask him what he thought of Jo Marchant, but, then again, did she really want to know?

Her mind ran back over the conversation she'd had with Jo. The other girl had much more in common with Nate than 92

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she did. Jo was everything she imagined Cerys to have been.

Jenni sighed. The more she thought about it, the more depressed she felt. Maybe she had been fooling herself when she'd thought Nate was attracted to her. A make-over and new clothes might not be enough to make him see her for the woman she really was.

The pavement outside Jenni's flat looked deserted for once, it being too cold even for the gang of teenage diehards.

Nate turned towards her.

"Thank you for everything today, Jenni. You've been fantastic. You kept everybody and everything running like clockwork." His warm voice rang with approval.

"No problem, truly. I know how much the contract means to you." Her spirits lifted again at his praise.

He lifted his hand to stroke a stray tendril of her hair and curled it idly around his finger. "In case I didn't tell you, you looked fabulous tonight, Jenni."

The blood rushed in her ears as her pulse moved up another notch. As if from a distance, she heard a squeaky

"Oh" come out of her mouth right before he kissed her.

* * * *

Rufus greeted him with unabashed relief on his return home and bounced up the hall to drop a half-chewed dog biscuit at Nate's feet. He sank down into a nearby armchair to rub the top of Rufus's silky head as he turned the events of the night over in his mind.

Jenni didn't stray too far from his thoughts as he remembered her in that fantastic red dress with the fabric 93

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that clung to her slender curves as she walked on her high heels—a beautiful young woman who oozed sex appeal and unconscious charm. The woman he'd kissed till they had both been breathless with passion. Someone he had no right to love.

While the girls had been in the powder room, Sam Woods had told him how impressed he had been by Jenni both in and out of the office.

"You're a lucky man, Nate!" Sam had remarked, as he'd puffed on his cigar.

The deep shameful sense that he had betrayed Cerys'

memory filled his soul. He realized for twenty-four hours now, he hadn't thought of Cerys. Hadn't compared other women to her, hadn't smelled her perfume or glimpsed a girl who looked enough like her to compel him to turn around to check the impossible. What had happened to him?

It had to be Jenni, but she deserved love, deserved a man who could give her his whole heart. Not someone like him. A man whose heart was buried with another woman in a cold and lonely grave. Nate had forfeited all rights to fall in love again the night he had failed Cerys.

* * * *

Jenni wasn't sure what to expect from Nate when she arrived for work the next morning. He had looked at her after they'd kissed as if he hadn't known who she was. He had recoiled from her so fast it had been embarrassing. She had to face the truth—no matter how much she might try to reach it. Cerys still held Nate's heart.

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Bitterly, she almost wished Jo Marchant luck. Almost, because she still had a niggling doubt that Jo might succeed where Jenni had failed.

Mike Walker waited by Lorna's desk as Jenni arrived. She smiled at him distractedly. In the last few days he had been hanging around a lot.

"Wow, Jenni, you look fabulous. I wanted to tell you yesterday, but I was so busy." His eyes gleamed with frank admiration from behind his glasses.

"Thank you, Mike." Something in her tone caused Lorna to look at her with a frown. Mike continued to loiter. He joined in the discussion whenever the opportunity arose. Jenni wished he wouldn't stand so close to her.

"When you've quite finished swapping gossip, Jennifer, we do have a business to run. Mr Walker, I'm sure there are plenty of things to do in your department."

Jenni swivelled on her heels, Nate never called her Jennifer. Her temper heated when she tilted her head upward to look at his face.

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CHAPTER EIGHT

Mike disappeared towards the lift. Lorna found a pressing errand to run. Which left Nate and Jenni alone by the reception desk.

"That was uncalled for, Nate." Jenni's heart thumped wildly at his closeness.

"Maybe, but there seems to be too much time wasted in idle gossiping around here lately. I know everyone is getting tired and it's almost Christmas, but I still have a business to run." He glowered at her as if he expected her to put up an argument.

"In that case then, I'll collect the mail and make a start,"

she answered.

"I take it everything's ready for the party next week?"

Jenni took a deep breath, struggling to keep her cool. He knew very well she had prepared everything.

"Of course, I ran everything past you a few weeks ago, I'm sure you remember," she said pointedly. "Now is there anything else or shall I get started?"

He looked as though he was about to try to think of something else, as he scowled at her. She was relieved when the phone rang. With Lorna still not back, Jenni grabbed it like a lifeline.

"Mayer Holdings, may I help you?" She half-turned to lean over the desk to reach for a notepad. She struggled to hear the faint female voice on the line. The woman spoke quietly 96

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almost as if she didn't want to be overheard. It was difficult to understand her.

"I would like to speak to Jennifer Blake, please."

Jenni didn't recognize the voice, but that wasn't unusual.

"Speaking, can I help you?"

"This is Tracey, I sent you a note the other day?"

Nate stepped to her side so he could hear the conversation, alerted by the tone of her voice.

"Yes, I got it. You said things were difficult for you at the moment." Jenni shook with fear. She crossed the fingers of her free hand behind her back. It would be awful if her mother had called to say she didn't want any further contact.

"I can't see you until after Christmas. It's too difficult for me. I don't want you to have any bother..." Tracey was almost whispering. Jenni could barely hear her. "I'll get in touch as soon as it's safe. I ... he's coming back, I have to go." Before Jenni had a chance to respond, the line went dead. She stared at the receiver.

Nate took the phone from her and placed the handset back in the cradle.

"Was it Tracey?" he asked.

Jenni's mind whirled. It had sounded as if her birth mother was frightened of someone—and frightened for Jenni. What could be going on? She blinked back her tears.

"Come on, we'll talk about this upstairs." Nate slipped a gentle, yet protective arm around her shoulders, and steered her towards the lift.

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"What did she say?" Nate's deep voice rumbled in her ear.

Inside the privacy of his office, he stepped away from her and stood with his hands in his pockets, watching her.

She repeated the conversation to Nate word-for-word.

"What do you think?" she asked.

To her dismay, he didn't give her an immediate answer. In fact, she sensed him almost struggling with himself—as if he knew or suspected something she didn't.

"Well?" she demanded, after a couple of silent and awkward minutes had ticked by.

"I didn't want to tell you this, because I knew you wouldn't like it and would probably tell me to mind my own business."

He paused, as if to weigh up how she might receive what he was about to say.

"What are you talking about?" Today had turned into a bad dream. Perhaps if she pinched herself she might wake up.

"I was worried for your safety after the note got pushed through your door, so I engaged a private investigator to do some research."

Indignation at his actions fought with fear for her mother's safety. "You did what?" she managed eventually.

"I was concerned about how she might have got hold of your home address and why the note had been left there rather than posted here. I think she's mixed up in something, Jenni, and on one point I wholly agree with her. I don't want you involved with it either."

Dumbfounded, she looked at him. The impact of his words seeped into her subconscious. Her teeth chattered as a wave of nausea washed over her.